Upstarts in the Making
by Crimson-Eyes26
Summary: Humanformers Universe: The Autohumans get yet another new recruit, and the first person she bonds with is none-other than Smokescreen. Pairings: SmokescreenXQuickslinger, BulkheadXOC, OptimusXOC.
1. The Tale of Two Rookies

Author's Note: I really enjoy doing Humanformers stories. This one centers around Smokescreen from TFP and the TFP version of Quickslinger. If you don't know, Quickslinger is a character that got brief mention from the Cybertron series and AllSpark Almanac II. Anyway, the Autohumans have another new recruit to add to their makeshift family, and some of them get a somewhat-unfavorable first impression of her. Some of the humanformers are based on those drawn by 72stars on Tumblr.

Chapter 1: The Tale of Two Rookies

All of them still wondered how they managed to afford this place; a three-story house outside an upscale neighborhood in Jasper, Nevada. But the six of them, well it was seven now, pitched in with enough money after a solid few years to purchase this home. Imagine…seven completely unrelated people considering each other their family, along with the three children they made friends with in the process. Of course, they had been a little on edge about letting other people into their lives at first, especially after Cliffjumper died. But now…maybe things were looking up.

"Smokescreen, for the last time, stop trying to grab food off of everyone's plates! You're acting like a little kid!" A woman with pink and dark brown hair snapped at a red-haired young man.

Smokescreen blinked his eyes up at her, his cheeks full of chewed-up hamburger. "It's just a few fries, Arcee. We've got plenty!"

"Plenty?" A muscular African-American man scoffed. "That's easy for you to say; you eat like a horse! Bumblebee doesn't eat that much; even I don't eat that much!"

"And here I thought you'd have my back, Bulkhead…" Smokescreen frowned.

A man with graying hair sighed and set down his newspaper. "Enough bickering, and finish your dinner!"

The man next to him, sporting dark hair and a moustache, eyed a black haired young woman sitting in another room. "Hawkeye…why don't you come join us at the table? There's plenty of room."

Hawkeye looked up from her plate, her aloof gaze not masked by her yellow see-through sunglasses. "…No thanks Optimus…I'm just fine."

Everyone felt put off by Hawkeye's behavior. It hadn't been long since she came out virtually unscathed from Megatron's 'gang' and joined them, because she was technically still on the run from her other past. Ratchet and Arcee were at first the most hesitant to let her in, but they knew she had nowhere else to go. But…it wouldn't hurt her to open up to them and stop keeping to herself so much, much to the chagrin of Bulkhead.

But things were a lot more hectic when Smokescreen came along…and it hadn't been long since another friend of theirs left: Mimicus. She was the youngest, and due to a fallout with Arcee, she left to go with the one she considered her only friend, which was Starscream. Of course, Bumblebee and his friend Rafael were hit the hardest over her absence. Smokescreen seemed to fill a void, but everyone still missed the crimson-haired girl.

"Hawk, come on!" Bulkhead called. "You can't stay in there all by yourself!"

Hawkeye only stared at him for a second before looking back at her plate and taking a bite of her hamburger, causing Bulkhead to sigh in defeat. He wouldn't admit it, but he was starting to have a thing for Hawkeye, and he was one of the first to trust her when she came into their home. Why did she still think she deserved to be alone?

"Hey Ratchet, you gonna eat that?" Smokescreen asked as he reached over for a few stray fries left on Ratchet's plate.

Ratchet responded by growling and using his newspaper to smack the young man's hand away. Smokescreen yelped and cradled his stinging hand as he cast puppy eyes at the aged doctor.

"Keep your hands to yourself." Ratchet glowered.

As everyone finished dinner, their voices ceased when a knock on the door resided in the air. Ratchet blinked for a moment, then grumbled as he got up and went to the door. It didn't help that a voice started calling from behind the door, "Hello, anyone home? Yoohoo!"

"Hold your horses; I'm at the door!" Ratchet shouted before turning the doorknob and getting a surprise.

Standing on the concrete sidewalk was a girl, about 16 or 17, with messy blonde hair; short in the front but tied in a long ponytail in the back. Her eyes were a shade of royal purple, which was a little put off by the freckles dotting her face. She must've really liked purple, because her clothes were all different shades of the color. In her arm was a large duffel bag, an indication that she was planning on staying somewhere for quite a while…

"Hi, my name's Quickslinger!" She stopped and looked at Ratchet from head to toe. "Hey I know you! You worked with my dad a long time ago! Your name's Ratchet, isn't it?"

The older man stared at her before something clicked in the back of his head. His old colleague in one of the larger cities, Rung, had a daughter named Quickslinger. Was this the same Quickslinger; when did she become so loud and obnoxious?

"Quickslinger…what are you doing here!? Does your father know you're here!?"

"Yep! I heard you guys were here, and I asked my dad if he could let me transfer to Jasper High, and he said yeah! I guess it's where he heard you were here, and you guys were best friends and all! So he sent me here to stay with you! Isn't that awesome!?"

Ratchet wanted to protest but the girl had already pushed past him and entered the residence, dropping her duffel bag with a loud thump. She stretched out her arms and groaned in content before placing her hands on her hips and glancing around the rooms.

"Wow, a lot of money must've went into this place! You guys must be rich or something!"

"Who's the kid, Ratchet?" Arcee asked with a hint of surprise in her voice.

The older man sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This…is Quickslinger. She's the daughter of a former colleague of mine…and he's letting her come live with us."

Arcee frowned. "Seriously? We're getting an eighth mouth to feed?"

Quickslinger pouted. "Wow, someone's very welcoming."

Optimus was the first to stand up and, to Quickslinger's surprise, offer his hand for her to shake. He nodded his head and greeted, "Welcome to our home Quickslinger." He paused when a realization came to him. "Your father seems to be familiar with Ratchet, so I may know him. Who is he?"

"You don't know? My dad's Rung!"

The patriarch's eyes widened. "Dr. Rung, the psychiatrist?"

"Yep! See, I wanted to get away from the city life; you know, find someplace quieter. And when I mentioned Ratchet's name, Jasper was the first thing out of his mouth! So I'm roughing it here until I'm ready for the city again!"

Quickslinger was about to describe life in the city even further when her violet eyes caught the attention of one of the members of the makeshift 'family' sitting at the table. Her eyes focused on the red-haired young man munching on a few leftover fries on his plate. A blush formed on her cheeks, darkening her freckles, which caused Smokescreen to notice.

"You okay?"

"U-Uh, y-yeah…just a little warm, that's all." Quickslinger answered before turning away and burying herself in her thoughts. 'Wow…he's cute.'

Smokescreen glanced over at Bumblebee to see if he could get some insight as to why she wasn't so talkative anymore. His friend just shrugged, unable to communicate with words. The two didn't really know that much about girls their age; Arcee was much older than them and Hawkeye looked the part but was almost as old as Optimus. Miko…she wouldn't count, and then there was that Sierra Jack always talked about. Mimicus wouldn't even count at all because she wasn't even a teenager yet. Maybe Shane…but she wasn't into girl stuff anyway. So…they were clueless as to how they could possibly decode Quickslinger's thought processes.

"Smokescreen." Optimus addressed the now-second-youngest member of the household. "Why don't you give Quickslinger a tour and show her where she'll be sleeping?"

The redhead quickly nodded before getting up and heading for the stairs, ushering the blonde to follow. Quickslinger blinked as she picked up her duffel bag and chased after Smokescreen. Everyone else wondered as to why Optimus chose the rookie to show her around; he himself was still getting used to the surroundings. Ratchet basically figured that Smokescreen knew what it was like to be the newbie, so it was better to be shown by someone in the same boat.

"And here's the bathroom; there's one downstairs too." Smokescreen informed Quickslinger, who followed closely behind. "You sure you don't want me to carry that?"

"I-It's not that heavy… Thank you, anyway." The blonde quickly answered.

The redhead placed his hands on his hips; he wasn't fooled, especially by the way her arms were trembling under the weight of the bag. Did she pack her entire bedroom into it? He suddenly held out one of his hands and motioned for her to hand it over. With a sigh, the blonde handed it to him, and Smokescreen was surprised by the weight.

"What did you pack in this thing?" He asked when he struggled to lift it up.

Quickslinger shrugged. "The essentials, I guess. I've got enough clothes to last for almost a year. Plus a toothbrush, razor, vitamins, medi-Uh, skip that last one."

"Do you really plan on staying for a year?"

"Like I said, I'm staying until I wanna go back to the city; I wanna see what a small town's like."

Smokescreen sighed and lugged the blonde's bag to the guest room further down the hall. As they went forward, Quickslinger stopped dead in her tracks and cast her violet eyes into one of the bedrooms. It had obvious sports and military memorabilia in it, along with a video game system and a very messy bed. On the bed, to her surprise, was a teddy bear that had on military fatigues. All of the residents here were a mix of young adults and older adults; who would have a teddy bear here?

"Who's room is that?"

The redhead peered into it and offered a smirk. "Oh, that's my room. Sorry it's a little messy."

"What's with the bear?"

"That's Lieutenant Bear. It's a gift my mom gave me before I went out on my own." He suddenly cast his blue eyes down on the floor. "I wonder how she's doing…"

The blonde stared at Lieutenant Bear for a long minute; what was it like to have a mom? She always had her dad and that was it…and Smokescreen didn't know how fortunate he was. However, Quickslinger let a smirk form on her lips before she casually commented, "…Mama's boy."

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Exactly what I said."


	2. Beginnings

Author's Note: It's Quickslinger's first day of school. She's not so nervous about it...until she finds out that it's Smokescreen taking her. How will she act around this guy who's too cute for his own good?

* * *

Chapter 2: Beginnings

"Get up Quickslinger."

"…Mmrrgh…"

"I said get up. You have to go to school." Ratchet commanded.

Quickslinger rolled over in bed and buried her face into her pillow. "…Don't wanna…"

The elder man was just about ready to lose his nerve; and here he thought people like Wheeljack were difficult. Honestly…how did Rung put up with her? "I'll give you to the count of three to get up…and if you don't, I'll have Bulkhead come and sit on your head!"

At the thought of Bulkhead's large butt resting on her skull, the blonde groaned and muttered to Ratchet, "All right, I'm up…"

Ratchet didn't even crack a smile as Quickslinger groggily sat up in bed and glared at him. He cleared his throat and made his way to leave the room. "Bulkhead, Arcee, and Bumblebee are getting ready to leave and take Miko, Jack, and Rafael to school…so we've arranged to have Smokescreen drop you off on his way to work."

Now at the thought of riding in the same vehicle with the redhead, the blonde's heart started to beat faster than normal. Why did she feel like that around him? Well…she had to admit that he was pretty cute. Pushing that out of her mind for now, she got up and trudged her way downstairs to breakfast. However, Ratchet held his hand out and stopped her.

"Get cleaned up and dressed first; you are not going to the table looking like you slept in a barn."

"I may sleep hard, but I'm not that dirty…"

Quickslinger came down to the table freshly washed and dressed, a lilac backpack slung over her shoulder. She looked to see Optimus, Ratchet, Bumblebee, and Smokescreen already seated and eating. Hawkeye, of course, was by herself in the living room watching television. The blonde awkwardly took a seat…right next to Smokescreen. She looked down and saw a plate of bacon and eggs staring back at her; how did they afford to feed everyone anyway?

"Good morning Quickslinger." Optimus greeted with a small smile as he held a newspaper. "Did you sleep well?"

"Uh…like a rock."

"Wow, you must be immune to Bulkhead's snoring; I could hear it all the way across the hall." Smokescreen joked, earning a discrete snicker from Hawkeye. "Just eat up and we'll be ready to go."

"Where do you work anyway?"

"Sporting goods store. Nothing special, really."

The blonde blinked her violet eyes. "Huh…"

"What, did you think I worked as a corporate executive? I don't see that anywhere in my future."

Quickslinger didn't answer; she just silently wolfed down her breakfast so she could get this day over with. She wondered what those kids Jack, Miko, and Rafael were like. Maybe she could be friends with them if she tried… After all…she basically had no friends back home…because all the kids from the city were complete jerks. Everyone here seemed nice…though the only ones that were being complete jerks with her were Ratchet and that Arcee chick. Bumblebee didn't speak, Bulkhead was too busy trying to get Hawkeye's attention, Optimus seemed okay, and then there was Smokescreen…

Smokescreen was different, but it wasn't in a bad way as far as she could tell. She immediately knew that he hadn't been here long either, but he was still more comfortable here than she was right now. But he just had to be so…friendly…and he had to act so freaking cute that she had to keep what she was really feeling to herself in order to avoid embarrassment.

Smokescreen never used to think driving to work was awkward…but now that he also had the task of dropping Quickslinger off at school before he got to work…well, now he just felt awkward. He didn't mind doing it, but it was just that he never had a girl in his car before…and that kind of made him nervous. It didn't help that Quickslinger was a YOUNGER girl, one still in high school. Speaking of which…he decided to break the awkward silence between them as they came upon a stop light.

"So…what's the high school in the city like?"

The blonde shrugged. "Not very exciting, and there wasn't anybody really worth making friends with. I guess I could give those kids you guys are friends with a try."

"Jack, Miko, and Raf are really nice…but just watch out for Miko. She kinda gets herself into trouble. Other than that, you're good!"

"Sounds like you know this from experience."

"Just ask Bulkhead. He's already getting stress lines." Smokescreen paused and pressed his foot on the gas pedal once the light turned green. "Do you have any favorite school subjects? Play any sports?"

"…I guess my favorite subject is math…it's the only one I'm really good at. Sports are more of my thing; I hope Jasper has a baseball team."

The redhead laughed. "You don't have to worry about that. Jasper High's baseball team is struggling a little bit, so if you're really good, then you could give them a hand."

Quickslinger laughed and leaned back in the passenger's seat. "They're THAT bad, huh? Then they'll be lucky to have me; I whipped everyone's butts back home when it came to baseball."

"In that case…if you make the team, I'll come to your baseball games."

The blonde shot her eyes, which were wider than saucers, at Smokescreen. "Y-You'd really do that? You'd really come to my games?"

"Well…yeah. And I can convince the others to come too. What do you say?"

Quickslinger thought hard about it. The only one who ever came to see her at baseball games was her dad…and now that she was separated from him, there wouldn't be anyone. But now…she only knew Smokescreen for a day, and he was already promising to come to her baseball games; he was the first one to bring up the issue. Either he was doing this because he like her…or he was just being too freaking nice as usual. However…that niceness weaseled its way into her, causing a bright-red blush to form on her cheeks.

"Y-Yeah…you can come to my games."

A grin appeared on Smokescreen's face. "All right, sounds like a done deal!" He stopped for a moment to apply the brakes right in front of the Jasper High School. "Here's your stop."

The blonde stared at all of the kids exiting the buses to get ready for their day of school. They seemed all right…for small-town people, she supposed. But she wanted to find the kids that already hung out with the others. Jack Darby, Rafael Esquivel, Miko Nakadai…she had to find them and try to become friends with them. Breathing out a sigh, Quickslinger grabbed her backpack and opened the passenger's door. Smokescreen offered her a smile and a wave.

"Have a great day!"

"Uh…thanks…"

Once Smokescreen's car was gone, the blonde gulped and proceeded to the front doors. Honestly…why did she suddenly feel like she was going to the penitentiary? Well…it probably had something to do with the experience back in the city…and she didn't want a repeat of that. As she was about to push open one of the front doors, a voice called out to her.

"Are you the new kid living with Optimus?"

Quickslinger turned to the side and saw a Japanese girl with black and pink hair run up to her. The strange girl was followed by two boys, a black haired one and a brown haired one wearing glasses. The Japanese girl grinned and greeted, "I'm Miko! You must be Quickslinger!"

The blonde shook hands with Miko. "Oh…you're the kid that hangs with Bulkhead. And you guys must be Jack and Raf. It's nice to meet you."

"Welcome to Jasper!" Rafael greeted. "I hope you like small towns compared to the city."

"I'd actually like to know what's in the city." Jack wondered. "So, do you intend to stay all year?"

"Yeah…I just got tired of the city; it's not as great as you think."

"So, who'd you get paired up with? Bulk's already with me, Bee's with Raf, and Arcee practically owns Jack!" Miko stated.

The blonde blushed and turned her head away before she demurely muttered, "…Smokescreen…"


	3. Take a Lap

Author's Note: Quickslinger accompanies the guys to the new gym in Jasper...even though it's technically the guys' day out. Will she manage to win over everyone, particularly Bulkhead and Wheeljack?

* * *

Chapter 3: Take a Lap

"Smokey, get your gear! We're headin' over to the gym!"

At the sound of Bulkhead's command, Smokescreen grabbed a blue gym bag sitting on the floor and bolted out of his bedroom. Once a week, he would head with Bulkhead and Bumblebee over to the local gym, one of the only few sources of recreation for the youth of Jasper besides school sports and illegal street racing. Since the gym came into town, the racing decreased but didn't disappear. And so every weekend was a "Guys' Day Out", meaning Wheeljack, Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Jack and Smokescreen would go and get in shape.

Quickslinger just happened to be in her room texting Miko on her phone when the redhead zoomed past her doorway. The blonde abruptly sat up and called out, "Whoa, where are you going?"

The redhead had time to stop and spare a few words with the blonde, so he offered up a smile and held up his gym bag. "Going to the gym; it's the guy's day out!"

"And what does everyone else do?"

"Optimus goes out driving, Ratchet gets in some extra hours at his clinic, Arcee goes up to the cemetery, and we never know what Hawkeye does."

Quickslinger leaned in closer. "Can I come with you guys? I have nothing else to do around here."

Smokescreen grimaced. "I don't know…if you came, it wouldn't really be 'Guys' Day Out'. It would be…'Guys' and Girl's Day Out'…"

The blonde pouted and sat back on her bed, crossing her arms over her almost-flat chest. "Hmph. Sexist."

"What? I'm not being sexist, I'm just saying-"

"Sexist, sexist, sexist, sexist, SEXIST!"

"I'm telling you, I'm NOT sexist!"

A smirk appeared on Quickslinger's lips; oh, it was on. "Blah, blah ,blah, SEXIST!"

"Smokescreen, are you comin' or not?" Bulkhead asked from the front door, impatience clearly evident in his voice.

"Come on Smokescreen, can I come, please? I don't wanna be stuck here all day with nothing to do! Besides, I can't go to the school's baseball field! Please? I won't ask for this again, I promise!"

The redhead breathed out a long-held sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. Honestly…this girl knew how to play people, but even with this, he didn't know if that could be considered a good thing or a bad thing. Quickslinger didn't seem like a bad kid…at least not yet. Finally, Smokescreen dropped his arms to his sides and breathed out, "Okay, you can go…but don't blame me when Bulk and the guys start complaining."

The blonde only flashed a grin. "I knew begging would work."

"Smokey, you can't be serious!" Bulkhead growled. "Why'd you let her talk you into this?"

"It's GUYS Day Out, remember kid?" Wheeljack muttered.

Smokescreen felt backed into a corner…but then again, why didn't anyone want to give Quickslinger a chance? Sure, when she first came, she sounded stuck-up, but she never seemed that way with him. Maybe…maybe she wanted to be herself just around him.

"Guys, there's no harm in bringing her along; she's not a girly-girl! Besides…she promised to be on her best behavior, and I don't think it would be right to leave her by herself."

"She seems like she can take care of herself just fine." The brown-haired man argued.

"But what if her dad found out? He'd probably freak; heck, if Ratchet found out HE'D freak!" Smokescreen paused and let out a frustrated sigh. "Come on guys, please? It would give Jack someone his own age to hang out with…'cause you know he hates that Vince kid."

The other men looked at each other, probably for a good minute, before finally looking back at the redhead. The heavyset man decided to be the first to answer. "Well…you have a point. All right…but just this once. If she messes up, leave her at home from now on."

"Well, are we going out or not!?" A female voice called.

The guys turned around and saw Quickslinger, dressed in a purple tank top, black shorts, lilac sweatbands, and purple and black tennis shoes. Her blonde hair stayed in its usual ponytail and she was packing a water bottle and a side bag containing a hooded sweatshirt. Despite the excitement she felt towards getting out, she could tell that everyone except Smokescreen wasn't too excited that a girl was intruding on their day. Well…what else was she supposed to do? Sit and mope around for about twelve hours?

"All right, let's pick Jack up and get going." Bulkhead sighed.

Needless to say, the gym was a little big for a small town. Quickslinger couldn't figure out what to do first; there were just too many options. Bulkhead and Wheeljack were busying themselves with the weight room, Smokescreen and Bumblebee were playing racquetball, and Jack was currently cooling off after about half an hour on the treadmill. If only they had a baseball field… Well, she remembered that one of the necessities for baseball is to have good legs…for running. And coincidentally, there was a table designed for strengthening the legs.

The blonde laid down on the table, and as she did, a perky 20-something who was previously working at the front counter asked, "Is this your first time using this?"

Quickslinger grunted. "It's actually my first time in a gym. You mind giving me some pointers? I wanna get my legs lean for sports."

"Sure thing!" The trainer beamed before she grabbed a rubber ball and placed it between Quickslinger's knees. "All you have to do is push up with your legs, not your back. Make sure your knees are completely bent when you come back down, and don't bend them when you're up."

The blonde nodded and proceeded to extend her legs and raise the upper part of the table. Geez…this was harder than it looked. She continued, trying to ignore the trainer's words of encouragement; talk about a total distraction.

"Say, where are your parents? I don't think I've seen you here before."

The blonde panted and stopped for a moment. "I just moved here…and I came with some friends. You know, the two guys in the weight room, the guys playing racquetball, and Sweaty over there."

"Oh yeah, I know them! Bulkhead and Wheeljack used to be part of the military; they were called the 'Wreckers'! Jack Darby works at the KO Burger to help out his mom, and I've known Bumblebee for a few years; it's just sad he can't talk. And don't get me started on Smokescreen; don't you think he's just a cutie?"

Quickslinger gulped and felt a hot blush form on her cheeks. "Y-Yeah…he's actually…cute."

The blonde finally collapsed the table down with her knees bent, panting and beads of sweat poured down her cheeks and forehead. She had to have been working at this for almost an hour, so the trainer told her to go sit where Jack was occupied until a few minutes ago and cool off. She grabbed her water bottle and chugged down the contents when she happened to look in the racquetball room. Bumblebee and Smokescreen were sweating through their shirts…so they decided to take them off.

And that's when Quickslinger felt like she was getting a small taste of what Heaven must be like.

Smokescreen removed his blue and white sports tee to reveal a finely-sculpted chest for his age, a red tattoo in-between his pecks. The sweat was actually making his body more well-defined in the light. The blonde felt the blush on her face start to grow bigger and get hotter…until she felt something warm and wet stream down to above her upper lip. Confused, she brought her fingertips to the area…and pulled back fresh blood. Panicking, she dashed towards the bathroom, locking the door, and grabbed a paper towel and jammed part of it into her nose.

He just had to take his shirt off, didn't he? He just had to be so well-built, didn't he? Now she knew that Smokescreen wasn't cute.

HE WAS HOT.

By the time she stepped out of the bathroom, the two young men finished their game and stepped out, wiping their foreheads and faces off with fresh towels. Quickslinger quickly snorted out the piece of paper towel in her nostril and tossed it into a trash bin. Bulkhead and Wheeljack stepped out of the weight room and Jack stepped off the treadmill after a second round. She cleared her throat and decided to lock eyes with the ex-Wreckers, still feeling a sting of judgmental air.

"Satisfied? I didn't get in your way of fun. But I guess you still don't want me to come anymore just 'cause…" She paused and snorted once more. "This is why I hate being a girl…"

Bulkhead and Wheeljack looked at each other; they weren't trying to hurt the kid's feelings or anything like that. The heavyset man sighed and stared back at Quickslinger. "Kid, if you think we were trying to make you feel bad or unwelcome, we weren't. Before you came along, the only girls were Arcee and Mimicus…and then Mimicus left. Of course Arcee doesn't hang with us much to begin with, so a day out's kind of important."

"But you could be a little more respectful with the adults around here." Wheeljack stepped in.

The blonde pretended to pout. "So…same time next week?"

"All right, all right, you're cool with us." Bulkhead admitted.

Smokescreen, Bumblebee, and Jack joined the three towards the gym exit as they continued to wipe sweat off of their bodies. The redhead took notice of something on Quickslinger's face and, to her surprise, took his thumb and rubbed over her upper lip.

"Did you hurt your nose? You've been bleeding."

Crap, she didn't get all the blood off! She frantically pulled away, the blush coming back to her cheeks. She then nervously licked her lips before answering, "Uh…it happens sometimes." She paused to let out a groan and rub her legs. "Can we go home now? I wanna crash for the rest of the day…"

"I'd better get home myself." Wheeljack added. "'Lena can't keep the kids forever."

Quickslinger cocked her eyebrow. "You don't look like the type who has a wife and kids."

"Welcome to the adult world, blondie."


	4. Batter Up

Author's Note: Quickslinger tries out for the school's baseball team, and she finds her greatest support from Smokescreen. Could she finally be making the friend she always wanted?

* * *

Chapter 4: Batter Up

"What's with the bat?" Miko asked Quickslinger, noticing the metal bat strapped to her back.

The blonde offered the Japanese girl a smirk. "Don't you know? Baseball tryouts are today. I know I'm gonna make the team; I even brought my own bat!"

"Are you a baseball fanatic?" Miko teased as the two girls walked to math class. "Bulk says that whenever school comes up in a conversation, all you ever spout about is baseball."

"Fanatic's too strong." Quickslinger argued. "I call it being 'highly dedicated'."

"Right… So, did you finish the math assignment? Actually…did you even GET it?"

The blonde laughed and patted her backpack. "What, math not your thing? Yeah…I actually finished my homework for once. Math's the only subject I actually comprehend…and I guess writing."

Miko laughed in return before checking a few things on her cell phone, a few things being the new pictures she took involving Bulkhead's new workout regiment; some of the guys were getting a little worried about the heavyset man's weight. She suddenly thought of something and turned back to Quickslinger. "I got a question…why do you act all weird around Smokescreen?"

Quickslinger stopped in her tracks; why did Miko have to ask a question like that? Why couldn't it be another question involving homework? She pretended to check something on her own phone and mutter, "I'll tell you after the tryouts…"

* * *

"So I heard you guys have another newbie living with you."

"Yeah, Quickslinger came just over a week ago…and I'm not a newbie anymore, Shane."

Shane Jetlagg, the tattoo artist who seemed to be in a relationship with Optimus, despite him almost being twenty years her senior, laughed at the redhead. Since she was on good terms with Optimus' 'family' she decided to stop by the sporting goods store and see how Smokescreen was during his shift. Heck, she made plenty of drop-bys at Ratchet's clinic and the police station Arcee worked at.

"You may have been there longer than she has, but you're still a newbie to me." The biker laughed. She stared at a few sets of snowboarding gear before asking, "So…anything from that military academy you applied for yet?"

Smokescreen shook his head. "No, nothing yet. I really want to get in; it's always been my dream to be a soldier, and I want to do whatever it takes to make that dream come true!"

"Does Quickslinger have any hobbies?"

"Uh…she really likes baseball…and she's going to try out for the school team. Once my shift's over, I'm going to the school and watch."

Shane laughed once again. "Make her a promise or something?"

"Well…I told her that if she made the team, I'd come to her games."

"Sounds like you two get along great. How are the others taking her? I know some of them've been on the edge since their pal Cliffjumper passed away."

The redhead looked up from his usual task of inventory. "…Yeah, Arcee's old partner. She's not really warmed up to Quickslinger like everyone else seems to…well, Ratchet's not really warmed up to her either."

"Well…hopefully they'll make her feel a little more welcome."

* * *

"Next up…Quickslinger!"

Before coming out to the field, Quickslinger changed into a t-shirt, shorts, tennis shoes, and a purple cap, to make a bit of a good impression. When the coach called her name, she stepped up, her metallic bat in hand, and stepped up to the plate. She got up and basically looked the pitcher, an ash-blonde, straight in the eye, ready for anything. Back at home, she convinced her dad to let her play baseball ever since elementary school. She watched all the games on television every chance she got, not just for entertainment, but to also study the plays. Baseball seemed to be the only thing she studied for in her life.

Right as she went out to the field just a few moments ago, she could hear the sound of a loud car engine…and she knew the sound anywhere: Smokescreen. He promised her that after he got off work, he would come by and watch her try out for the team. And just outside the fence, he greeted the coach and took a seat on the bleachers. All of a sudden, she felt more nervous than before…but she knew she couldn't mess this up.

Breathing out a deep sigh, she raised the bat over her head and kept her eye on the pitcher. The pitcher brought her hand back and forcefully threw the ball. Don't swing until the right time…that was one of the key factors in this sport. Her violet eyes locked onto the ball rushing towards her…and when it seemed like it was about to hit her in the face…she took a swing, and it made a deafening crack.

No one blinked as the ball flew over the fence and Quickslinger, deciding to show off a little, made a home run. All of the other potential players stared in awe…but Smokescreen loudly cheered and clapped his hands. The blonde skidded back to the first base and made a slide for it…just like in the tensest moments of the pro-games.

"T-That's impossible…" One of the senior players muttered. "No one's ever gotten a home run on the first try…"

"She could probably help us beat the Sparks Jaguars if she's this good…" Another player whispered back.

The coach looked back and forth between his clipboard and Quickslinger before sputtering out, "W-Wow…you're a natural! How did you…how did you do that?"

Quickslinger shrugged. "What can I say? I'm just that passionate about baseball."

"I gotta say, you've got potential to make the team, maybe even become our new MVP! I still have to look at everyone else, but I think you'll make the team."

The blonde blinked rapidly. "R-Really!? That's great!"

Smokescreen overheard what the coach told the blonde and smiled; he himself was in awe of how good she was. However…he also took notice that some of the senior players were starting to become green with envy. Quickslinger went over to the redhead and started bouncing up and down.

"Smokescreen, this is great! I just know I'm gonna make the team, I just know it!"

"I think so too!" He paused and stared her deep in the eyes. "But…if you make the team, just be careful…especially if some of the other players get jealous. Even high school baseball can get a little cut-throat."

"You worry too much. Now let's go home and tell everyone else!"

* * *

"I never saw Quickslinger so excited." Arcee mused. "What's she so happy about?"

"The baseball coach said she was good enough to probably make the team; she's supposed to get a call tonight from him." Smokescreen explained. "And if you haven't seen her play, you probably wouldn't believe it."

Bumblebee sipped from his soda can before using sign language to ask Smokescreen, 'She's that good, huh? Maybe I'll come to her games, too.'

The older female rolled her eyes. "Probably just beginner's luck."

Without warning, Quickslinger rushed downstairs from her room and peered into the kitchen. "Has the phone ringed yet!?"

Ratchet sighed. "If it was ringing, you'd be able to hear it from upstairs! Be patient, Quickslinger; it's not the end of the world if you don't make the team."

"Don't jinx it, Ratchet!" The blonde shouted. "I'm definitely gonna make the team!"

Bulkhead couldn't help but laugh. "Miko was right, you are a baseball fanatic."

Optimus offered up a quiet chuckle before stopping to hear the phone ring. Before Quickslinger could rush towards it, he offered up his hand to stop her as he got up and picked it up and cleared his throat before speaking into the receiver.

"Hello? …Yes, she's here. …Yes, she's available to speak with." He paused and handed the blonde the phone. "It's the baseball coach."

Quickslinger nervously took the phone from the patriarch and spoke into it. "H-Hello? Y-Yeah, I'm all right. …What!? Really!? That's great! …O-Oh, I wasn't worried at all! …O-Okay, thanks!" She hung up the phone and immediately beamed. "I made the team!"

To her surprise, Smokescreen was the first to cheer…and he actually came up and hugged her. Of course, she was too busy to start acting nervous and just hugged him back without thinking. Everyone else laughed, feeling happy for the teenager that she immediately found a calling in this small town. The blonde broke away from her embrace with the redhead and rushed back upstairs as she cried out, "I gotta call Dad and tell him!"

Once Quickslinger was out of the kitchen, everyone turned their eyes to the redhead. Arcee smirked and stated, "Never thought you two would be so close."

Smokescreen shrugged. "I-I'm just happy for her, that's all. Isn't that what friends are for?"

What he didn't realize was that Quickslinger heard him from the stairs. She blinked her violet eyes and placed her hand on her chest, directly over her heart; she could feel it fluttering underneath. Did he just…call her his friend? A sigh escaped her rosy lips as they slowly formed into a smile.

"Wow…I made my first friend…"


	5. Get Well Soon

Author's Note: Smokescreen isn't feeling so well, so Quickslinger has to ride to school with Raf and Bumblebee. However, she learns that Smokescreen is in the hospital. How will she react to knowing her very first friend is possibly gravely ill?

* * *

Chapter 5: Get Well Soon

Smokescreen woke up that morning feeling more like crap than he ever did. Lifting his face from his pillow, he found the fabric to be saturated in sweat, along with most of his face. Did Arcee turn the heat up again? When he tried to raise the rest of himself out of the bed, he was met with a pain that radiated above his right hip. What was wrong with him? Was it something he ate? Next time he would be a little more wary when it was Bulkhead's turn to cook.

"Smokescreen, are you up yet?" A voice called. "You gotta take me to school!"

The redhead recognized it as Quickslinger; she must've gotten up early, which was surprising. He tried once again to get out of the bed but was floored by the pain. Hearing a groan coming from his room, the blonde walked in to see the miserable-looking sight sprawled under the covers.

"What happened to you?"

"…I don't know…I don't feel so good…" He paused and let out another groan. "You may have to have Bumblebee take you as he goes to get Raf…"

Quickslinger leaned forward and placed the back of her hand to his forehead. After a few seconds, she pulled it back and her eyes widened. "Smokescreen, you're burning up. I'm gonna go tell Ratchet…and I think I'm gonna stay home."

Smokescreen shook his head and frowned. "No, you're going to school; you have a test today and you have baseball practice."

"But Smokescreen…"

"Just go tell Ratchet… I'll be in good hands…don't worry about me…"

The blonde sighed. "Whatever you say…"

"Quickslinger, are you really worried about Smokescreen?"

The blonde looked away from the window in the yellow sports car and turned her attention to Rafael. It sucked that Smokescreen wasn't taking her today, but she didn't have any beef with Bumblebee, so she figured it was all right just for today. "…Yeah, I guess I'm worried about him. I mean…he was running a fever and everything…"

"Maybe he just caught a cold."

"No…he was holding his right side, over his hip. Maybe he has an infection or something."

Rafael blinked and his eyes started to radiate the same worry that Quickslinger had. "If it's his right side, it might be his appendix."

The blonde cocked an eyebrow. "You mean that little doodad hanging off the colon that's completely useless?"

"Yeah. Sometimes, it gets germs in it and gets infected. If his appendix is infected and he doesn't get to the hospital…he could die."

Quickslinger leaned back in the seat, her shoulders suddenly shaking and her eyes starting to sting like crazy. "D…D-Die…?"

Quickslinger felt like time was stopping on and off just to tick her off. For once, the history test was no problem, but she had trouble keeping focus…and for once baseball was the last thing on her mind. Was Smokescreen going to be okay? Was he going to die? No…no, he couldn't die; he was older than her, but he was still young compared to the others. While sitting in math class, she found herself doodling stick people that resembled herself and Smokescreen instead of taking notes on how to find derivatives. Before she had the opportunity to slam her head on to the desk from pure stress and exhaustion, the teacher paused his lecture when the phone started ringing. He answered and spoke a few words before turning to the class and calling out, "Ms. Quickslinger, you need to go to the front desk; it's urgent."

Anxiety setting in from the possibility that she was in trouble, the blonde got up, ignoring the stares of everyone including Miko, she stepped out of the room and trudged down the hall to the front of the school building. What was going on? Last time she checked, she didn't break any rules, unless flashing her bat at that Vince guy counted. When she got to front desk…she saw the receptionist holding the phone out, readily expecting her. Curious, Quickslinger took the phone from her and placed it to her ear.

"…Hello?"

"Hey Quick, it's Bulkhead. I've got some bad news…Smoke's in the hospital."

"The hospital!? WHY!?" The blonde literally screamed into the phone.

"Calm down, kid. Ratchet noticed his fever and knew what it was…so he took him to the hospital. Doctor's said his appendix was just about an hour or less away from bursting; they've got him in surgery right now."

Quickslinger swallowed hard and breathed deeply. "Bulkhead, come get me RIGHT NOW! I gotta go see him!"

"Hold on, Smoke's gonna be just fine! Well…the doctors of course said we got 'im there just in time. If Ratchet wasn't a doctor himself…well…Smokey would be in the morgue."

"Bulkhead…don't scare me like this; it's not funny!"

The heavyset man sighed at the other end of the phone. "…Sorry. Look, we'll take you to see him after practice, okay? Just…keep your chin up for his sake."

The blonde sighed and wiped her eyes when they started to sting. "…Fine…"

The wait was excruciating, to say the least. Everyone else was seated…but Quickslinger was the only pacing. As she paced, she glanced just about every thirty seconds at Smokescreen's door, ignoring the pain forming in her neck from the constant turning.

"Sit down Quickslinger; you're going to pace a hole in the floor." Arcee stated.

"…No thanks." The blonde quickly answered.

"Quickslinger, Smokescreen is fine, he just needs rest." Ratchet argued. "You need to settle down or you'll end up in similar shape."

"I'll settle down when I know for sure he's okay."

The elder man sighed; unlike Rung, she was much more stubborn than a bull. But it was also strange concerning how concerned she felt for Smokescreen. She only knew them for about two weeks…but then again…she always had a hard time making friends back home. So maybe…Smokescreen was the first friend she ever made.

Bumblebee watched the blonde as he listened to some songs on his MP3, absentmindedly scratching his head towards his Mohawk. Bulkhead busied himself reading some old magazines…and surprisingly, Hawkeye decided to expose herself to the sunlight and accompany them, though she was wearing a head-scarf and sunglasses; apparently she didn't want anyone to know who she was. Optimus was chatting with June Darby, Jack's mother, before Ratchet joined in their conversation. Arcee took out her police badge and polished it a little…so the only restless one was Quickslinger. She stared at everyone and huffed; they acted so calm like they didn't care whether or not Smokescreen was okay. What was wrong with them?

"Aren't you guys the least bit worried!?" The blonde vented. "You're acting too calm for my tastes!"

"Quickslinger, we are worried, but we don't always have to show it." Arcee sighed. "Now calm down, the doctor will be out any minute."

Before Quickslinger could argue, Smokescreen's door opened up and the doctor stepped out. He cleared his throat and addressed to them, "His surgery went off without a hitch, and he's woken up now. But please, just one visitor at a time."

The doctor didn't have to even ask as Quickslinger shoved past him and ran into the room. Stepping inside, she found Smokescreen slightly elevated in the bed with an IV in his left arm. He had a remote in his hand and he was flipping through the channels on the television mounted into the wall. Hearing footsteps, he turned his head and smiled at who came.

"Quickslinger, you made it!"

The blonde swallowed hard, a small smile forming on her lips but disappearing quickly. Was this guy an idiot? He could've died, and he's acting like nothing ever happened. And his cheery attitude didn't help the fact that she was so worried about him that day she almost threw up during baseball practice.

"…You act really chipper."

"Well, why wouldn't I? I'm feeling a thousand times better than I did this morning…well, except for the stitches." He admitted when he grunted and placed his hand over his right hip.

Quickslinger closed the door and felt her shoulders start to tremble. She shot her eyes away so he wouldn't see she was on the verge of crying. Finally, she ran up to the bed, got right into his face, and vented out several heated breaths.

"You could've DIED, and here you are acting like the whole thing didn't happen! Do you know how scared I was!? When Bulkhead told me you were in surgery…the way he sounded…well, he sounded like you were already heading for the morgue! I never felt so…so…"

She stopped when the redhead took hold of her hand in a gentle manner. She finally re-established eye contact with him…and he saw her eyes leaking and tears staining her freckled cheeks. He took notice of how her fingertips felt calloused, obviously from handling a bat since maybe preschool. But it also amazed him that she was so worried about him. Quickslinger finally calmed down and bit her lip.

"Smokescreen…can I tell you a secret?"

"Of course…and I promise I won't tell anyone."

"Well…to tell you the truth…you're the first friend I've ever made in my life…"

Smokescreen's eyes widened. He couldn't believe that at sixteen years of age she never had a friend until she met him. Why would anyone not want to be her friend? If it was because of her sometimes-obnoxious attitude…then they didn't understand it was just a mask…a way for her to hide her true self and avoid possible ridicule. It was sad, and he actually wanted to cry with her…to show her that he really cared for her.

"Well Quickslinger…let's make a promise that we'll be friends forever."

The blonde blinked her violet eyes and stared into his blue ones. "W-What…? You…you really mean that?"

The redhead nodded and proceeded to interlock his pinkie with hers. "Pinkie promise?"

She nodded and felt a genuine smile grace her lips. "…Yeah…just promise never to scare me like that again…"


	6. Rough Crowd

Author's Note: Quickslinger finds a few people already that give her a hard time already and probably won't ever get along with. How will she deal with the situations? Is there growing tension in the Autohuman household concerning a former occupant?

* * *

Chapter 6: Rough Crowd

"Have you studied any for the science test?" Jack asked Quickslinger while they were eating lunch.

"Tch, as if. I've been too busy making sure I'm up to speed on my game!"

"Well…hate to burst your bubble, but if you don't have good grades, they'll kick you off the team."

The blonde let out a loud groan and hung her head. "Looks like I'll be studying for the science test after all…"

Jack laughed before taking a bite of the so-called corn dogs the school served; Quickslinger was convinced the lunch ladies were actually feeding the children poison, judging from the way they scowled at the children whenever they dared to make eye-contact. That's why she brought her own food…because she knew no one would tamper with it. The blonde suddenly noticed the raven-haired boy ogling one of the tables…well, at the red-haired girl sitting at the table.

"What's up with you?"

"Oh…that's Sierra. She's the cheer captain for the football team…"

Quickslinger snorted. "Football sucks. Seriously, why don't they ever have cheerleaders for baseball; it deserves more respect! Besides, football's filled with too many sweaty muscleheads! I guess that's why Vince fits right in."

Jack couldn't help but laugh; she was definitely right about that. His laugh stopped when Sierra and her friend walked by to leave lunch early. Maybe this could be his chance to ask her out.

"Hey, Sierra! D-Do you have a minute?"

Sierra turned her head and stared at the raven-haired boy. "Oh…Jack, right? Who's your friend?"

"Uh…this is Quickslinger. She moved here from the city."

"Quickslinger? What kind of name is that?"

Quickslinger cocked her eyebrow. "So you're the cheer captain? What's so good about football that you'd willingly allow yourself to cheer for sweat-heads?"

Jack quickly stepped in to cool the situation before it could heat up. "U-Uh, Quick's part of the baseball team; she's really good…and really passionate about it."

Sierra's eyes widened. "Wait, YOU'RE the one who got a home run at baseball practice? No one's ever done that here. How long have you been playing baseball?"

The blonde shrugged. "Since first grade on the peewee team."

"Then you have an advantage; the Jasper team hardly wins any games, and the elementary school doesn't even have a peewee team. I know you don't like football…but I overheard you a minute ago. I guess…baseball does have enough perks to earn cheerleaders."

Quickslinger's eyes softened. "Uh…thanks."

* * *

"You're already waiting for Smokescreen?" Rafael asked. "How come you're not at practice?"

Quickslinger grunted. "The coach is sick, and that really sucks. He said we could make up practice this weekend before the game against the Sparks Jaguars. So I called him up and he's on his way now. What about you? Waiting for Bumblebee?"

"Yeah…but he might've caught the same thing your coach has, so he'll probably be late."

"Don't worry; Bumblebee's not the type to ditch his buddy. Besides, Ratchet probably has a home remedy that isn't toxic."

As the two chatted while waiting for their rides, they were approached by a black car with flames on it…and an obnoxious redhead driving it. Of course, Vince had to butt in on their precious time and find an excuse to torment them. He was especially hard on Jack and Raf…and Quickslinger didn't like it one bit.

"Hey Shorty." He addressed the young boy. "Waiting for Mommy to pick you up? Are you gonna sit in her lap?"

"…L-Leave me alone, Vince." Rafael muttered.

"And who's gonna make me?" Vince chuckled.

The blonde frowned and tapped her bat on the concrete. "Get lost, muscle-head. Raf's not gonna be your punching bag anymore!"

The redhead boy frowned. "Well, if it isn't the baseball freak. Never would've thought you could actually swing a bat. Just because you're on the team doesn't mean the team sucks any less! What makes you think you could make any difference? Jasper's football turf, so you'd better watch yourself!"

Quickslinger narrowed her violet eyes. "Up yours, butt-munch! You think you can intimidate people with that piece of crap you call a car and that flab you call muscle? Not me! I'd better not catch you laying a hand on my friends, or you'll find my bat SHOVED up your ASS."

"Is that a threat, blondie? 'Cause we can duke it out, right here, right now!"

Before anything else could be said and before the blonde could bring out her bat, two sports cars pulled up to the curb, honking at the muscle car blocking the way. Vince turned his head and saw the cars side-by-side, but he didn't move. Instead, he shouted out, "Go park somewhere else!"

"Move over, kid!" The voice belonging to Smokescreen shouted. "We gotta pick up our friends!"

"Who's gonna make me?" Vince dared the two adults.

"Move or I'm calling the cops! Especially considering that we know you're threatening our friends!"

Vince only grunted as he put the car in drive and sped away, heeding the threat of the older redhead. He glanced back and saw Rafael go to the yellow and black car and Quickslinger offering a salute…with her middle finger. She proceeded to get in the silver and blue car with Smokescreen.

"How did you know Vince was threatening us?"

Smokescreen shrugged. "I didn't, really. I just always knew you guys had trouble with him. He didn't hurt you or Raf, did he?"

The blonde laughed. "As if! If he was really man enough to fight, he's be on the ground with a broken nose and a few missing teeth!"

"Well, you shouldn't really fight anyway, especially on school grounds. You could get in serious trouble and possibly kiss your baseball dreams goodbye."

"Relax, I wasn't gonna pound him. Besides…he's not man enough to pick a fight with a girl."

* * *

"Sorry you didn't get to go to practice, Quick." Bulkhead apologized. "The coach should be better this weekend."

Quickslinger pouted and played with her mashed potatoes. "It still sucks, and I know it's that stomach virus going around. If Bumblebee has it, he'd better not give it to me; I cannot afford to miss practice."

"A lot of children and teachers in the district are out because of that miserable virus." Ratchet grumbled. "The last thing we need is for this household to get it." He paused when he heard a noise coming from the upstairs bathroom. "I'd better give Bumblebee some more crackers and Sprite, and make sure Smokescreen's not getting sick."

When the elder man left, Arcee cast her eyes on the blonde, not even glancing away to look at her own plate. "So…I heard you and Rafael had a run-in with Vince."

Quickslinger snorted. "Yeah…the dickhead decided to bother us."

"Watch your language." The brunette warned. "Did he threaten you two?"

"Yeah…and he was about to have his bat shoved all the way up to his throat."

"You didn't start the fight, did you?"

The blonde cocked her eyebrow. "Don't know how to stop being a police officer, do you? Of course not! Me and Raf were just standing on the curb, waiting for Smoke and 'Bee, when he decides to pull up and call out cheap shots!"

Arcee frowned. "I was just asking. I wasn't trying to accuse you of anything."

"…Well, I think you were, since you feel like you need to incur your wrath on SOMEONE."

"Watch your words, or you're going to be in serious trouble." Arcee stated as she stood up and took her plate off the table. "Show some respect or no more baseball."

Quickslinger growled. "You're NOT my MOM. In fact, you're as much of a bully as Vince!"

"Settle down, the both of you." Optimus warned before turning to Arcee. "Arcee…this is our home, not the police station. There is no need to interrogate her; I believe she is telling the truth." He then turned to the blonde. "Quickslinger, while you are right in that Arcee is not your mother, you still need to show her and treat her with respect. After all…treat others the way you want to be treated…and that goes for all of us."

"…Whatever…and I've done just fine without a mom…"

Once Quickslinger left to go to her room, Bulkhead turned his head to Arcee and asked, "'Cee, don't you think you're being a little too hard on Quick? All she was doing was protecting Raf."

"What she needs to do is stop acting like a brat and stop being the antagonist. Besides, Raf needs to learn to stand up for himself; we can't fight his battles for him."

"That's kind of harsh…"

"Well, it's the truth!"

The heavyset man suddenly frowned. "What, are you trying to chase Quickslinger off? Just like you chased Mimicus off?"

"I did NOT chase her off!"

"Arcee, Bulkhead, that is enough!" Optimus commanded. "We are not going to get into a physical altercation, do you understand?"

"…Yes, sir…" They muttered in unison.

As the rest of the dinner went by without anyone speaking to each other, Hawkeye came in, carrying her plate to the kitchen sink, and muttered to Arcee, "Way to royally screw up getting along with the new kid."

"Stay out of this, Hawkeye. This doesn't concern you." The brunette growled.

"Really? Listen to Optimus for once; your home life and your job just don't mix. After all…treating your family members like criminals won't bring Cliffjumper back…" She paused to let out a sigh. "Do us all a big favor: actually enjoy life and quit dwelling on the past."


	7. For Here or to Go

Author's Note: While hanging out with Jack at the KO Burger, Quickslinger has an encounter with Wheeljack and his family and asks about his life. What happens when she gives him advice about a personal problem?

* * *

Chapter 7: For Here or To Go

"This is a bunch of crap." Quickslinger grumbled. "The school really expects us to sell junk to people within a couple of weeks? They never made us do this back in the city!"

"That's just how some schools are." Smokescreen chuckled. "They try to do anything to raise money for new supplies; small-town schools are hit the hardest by cut-backs."

"Yeah, well they always try to trick us by saying if we sell so much, we get prizes!" She suddenly snorted. "As if! It's just a trick to get us to sell all the junk; there's no prize at all!"

The redhead laughed again, just because he knew she was right. His laughter stopped when a purple cell phone started ringing to Ellie Goulding. Quickslinger threw the Avon magazine on the table and answered it.

"Hello? Oh, hey Dad. …I'm doing fine; the school's just forcing us to do a stupid fundraiser. …Huh? Wow, managed to finally get a vacation, huh? …Oh, I'm sure Optimus won't mind at all; there are plenty of rooms, and Ratchet could help out. …Okay. Yeah, I'm fine with it. …Okay, I love you too. Bye." She hung up the phone and let out a sigh. "My dad finally got a vacation from his office, and he wants to come over for a visit next week."

"All the way from the city? He must really miss you."

"Yeah…and I miss him too. He said he was gonna come watch my game next weekend, too." She paused and narrowed her eyes at Smokescreen. "You're coming too, right? You promised…"

"Of course! Wouldn't miss it for the world!"

"Good." She grabbed a can of soda from the fridge and headed for the door. "I'm going over to the KO Burger to bug Jack for a while. What are you gonna do today?"

The redhead shrugged. "Since I've got the day off and 'Bee's got the day off, we were gonna go see a movie or something, or go to the gym. You sure you don't want to come?"

The blonde shrugged as well. "I'll catch up later."

* * *

"The fundraiser getting to you, too?" Jack asked Quickslinger when he finally earned his break.

"Yeah, it's completely stupid!" The blonde huffed. "What do they expect us to do, magically sell stuff to people? Honestly, they could just quit spending so much on football games and use money for stuff that's actually important, like books that weren't falling apart or held together by tape!"

"Calm down…there's a lot of football fans in here."

Quickslinger was about to continue on with her rant when a couple and their two young children walked in. The blonde immediately recognized the man but not the woman and two boys. She got up from the table and stated to the raven-haired boy, "I'll be right back; save a burger for me."

The blonde pushed her way through some of the people in line until she reached the family getting into said-line. They didn't pay attention to her presence until she called out, "Wheeljack, is that you?"

The brown-haired man turned to the voice and smirked when he saw the blonde. "Blondie, long time no see! What brings you here?"

"Bugging Jack while he's on break. What about you? I didn't know you lived in Jasper."

"Just a few blocks down from where you guys are." He paused and brought the woman next to him in view. "This is my wife, Serlena, and these are our sons, Topspin and Kobian."

Serlena smiled and shook hands with Quickslinger. "Jackie's told me about you from Bulkhead. I heard that you can be pretty feisty."

"I'll take that as a compliment." The blonde retorted.

Kobian stepped forward and pointed towards Quickslinger's face. "Why you got dots on your face?"

"Those are freckles, Kobi." Topspin told his little brother. "Pointing at people's rude."

"You two be nice to Quickslinger or Grandma won't give you any presents." Wheeljack warned before turning back to the teenager. "We're on our way to my mom's house and figured we'd stop and get a bite to eat."

"One trip that I never look forward to…" Serlena muttered.

"Now remember to act civil, 'Lena. Why don't you and the boys get in line and I'll get a table?"

The smokey-haired woman sighed but had a smirk on her face as she took hold of their sons' hands and kept them in line. The brown-haired man found a table near where Jack was sitting and sat down…and to his surprise, Quickslinger took a seat across from him.

"Sounds like your wife has in-law trouble." She muttered playfully.

Wheeljack sighed, crossing his arms and leaning slightly on the table. "Serlena and my mom have never gotten along…and it's because, according to my mother, she 'stole her baby away'. My mom's always been a little…clingy."

"Clingy must be putting it lightly; my dad's nowhere near like that with me. But Serlena seems like a nice lady; why would anyone want to hate her?"

"Truthfully…my mom would've hated any girl I married…'Lena just happened to be the one." He paused and let out a chuckle. "My ma can try whatever she wants, but I'm not leaving my wife and kids. But…I still take the boys to see her…'cause I think they need their grandmother in their lives."

Quickslinger frowned slightly. "Well…if you want to get the message to your mom…why not just keep your kids away from her for a while?"

Wheeljack shook his head. "Things aren't that simple, kid." He let out another sigh. "But what bugs me the most is that she doesn't treat the boys equally. She plays favorites with Topspin…because Kobi looks more like his mother."

"That's terrible, and just messed up!" The blonde gasped. "Your mom needs to cut the crap and act like a human being for once! Don't be afraid to tell her off just because she's your mother; tell her that enough is enough! It's one thing to treat your spouse like crap, but to treat one of your kids like crap just because he looks like his mom? That's just cruel…"

"You're serious about me telling my mom off, aren't you?"

Quickslinger nodded firmly. "Yeah, and don't let her guilt trip you either. Just tell her to treat your wife and kids with respect or she's not welcome in your lives anymore. Your kids'll do just fine, just as long as they have BOTH of their parents together. And your mom will live…it'll give her some time to grow some humanity."

"For a teenager, you give some pretty sound advice." Wheeljack admitted after a moment of silence. "All right, I'll try it."

"Sounds almost like you've learned life tips from an expert." Serlena teased when she and the boys came to the table with their food.

Quickslinger laughed. "My dad's a psychologist, and he occasionally has to play marriage counselor. When I was a kid and stayed at his office, I overheard some of his patients, and they had similar problems."

Serlena suddenly fell silent and studied the teenager's eyes. That shade of violet…why was it so familiar? She knew she had seen those eyes before, but not from Quickslinger. She ignored it for now and would try to figure things out later. She stood until the blonde got up and allowed her to sit down.

"So…what exactly is it that you guys do for a living?"

"Well, as you know, Bulk and I were once part of the Wreckers…similar to black ops. 'Lena's a psychologist, like you said your dad is."

The smokey-haired woman chuckled. "Why don't you tell her about the time you and I first met? We've got plenty of time to spare."

"All right, if you insist." He stared at their sons. "Boys, cover your ears. Mommy and Daddy are gonna talk about some lovey-dovey-kissy stuff."

Topspin and Kobian groaned in disgust and covered their ears. Wheeljack laughed before turning back to Quickslinger, who took a seat at the table Jack had been occupying and beginning.

"It was quite a few years ago. I was on the battlefield, having just been surrounded by enemy troops and taking them down, and I had my back turned. I found myself alone, expecting to be taken down or ambushed by a sniper or something. I got to a secluded area and started backing away…and that's when I felt something touch me. Turned around real quick…and there was 'Lena, looking wilder than the wilderness itself."

Serlena chuckled and stared at Wheeljack with amorous amber eyes. "It was love at first sight…for both of us."

"So wait, the both of you met while still in war?"

"Yeah…and 'Lena had just betrayed the enemy side. Wanted to join us, but most of the guys didn't trust her. So they cuffed her in the back of the copter with Ironhide's pet Malamute…until she managed to slip the cuffs off and used them to cuff the dog to the rail."

"Well, they wouldn't let me go to the bathroom…" Serlena teased. "I couldn't just sit there and urinate all over myself."

"Wow…that's actually the coolest love story I ever heard." Quickslinger awed.

Serlena laughed. "That's a clever compliment. We eloped at the base as soon as we got to the base. And that's part of the reason why Jackie's mom hates me."

Quickslinger looked on her cell phone and realized she needed to meet Smokescreen and Bumblebee at the movie theater. "I gotta go. Let me know how the in-law problem goes when you get back! And I'll tell Bulkhead you said hi!"

"Take care, blondie." Wheeljack stated. "Hope your baseball career takes off."

* * *

"It's about time you arrived! Where have you been?" Smokescreen asked when Quickslinger finally arrived.

The blonde panted and hunched over in front of Smokescreen and Bumblebee. She took a few deep breaths before straightening up and answering, "…I saw Wheeljack and his wife and kids at the KO Burger…so I talked with them…and actually gave them advice."

The redhead tilted his head to the side. "Really? I don't get to see Wheeljack much except for our days at the gym."

"He's a pretty cool guy…and his wife's cool too. I got so caught up in talking with them that I almost forgot about meeting you guys. Sorry…"

A smile suddenly appeared on Smokescreen and Bumblebee's faces. "Hey, don't worry about it. The important thing is you made it, right? Come on, let's get our tickets and popcorn before the line gets too long."

"What are we watching? Please don't let it be a romantic comedy!"

Smokescreen laughed. "Relax, it's just a little horror movie! You can handle horror movies, right?"

Quickslinger smirked and flippantly waved her hand. "Please, nothing scares me!"


	8. That Special Someone

Author's Note: Quickslinger's dad Rung comes to visit, and just in time for the big baseball game against the Sparks Jaguars. During this game, Rung confides a secret to Ratchet concerning his daughter and Smokescreen and Quickslinger realize that they may just be more than best friends.

* * *

Chapter 8: That Special Someone

"Are you sure you're not nervous about tonight? This is the BIG game, after all." Smokescreen wondered as Quickslinger got her gear together.

"I'm not nervous at all! I've been preparing for this night for the past few weeks!" The blonde quickly answered. "The Jasper Panthers and the Sparks Jaguars are basically blood rivals, and with me on the team, we're gonna smoke 'em!"

"Not to mention your dad's coming to watch. And I double-checked with everyone else; we'll be coming too." The redhead paused and glanced at the clock. "We'd better get going and meet your dad at the bus station."

"Right…"

Smokescreen's smile faded from the tone in the blonde's voice. "Aren't you excited to see your dad?"

"Of course…I just think he worries about me too much, that's all."

* * *

Quickslinger couldn't help but be a little nervous. After all, she hadn't seen her dad for about a couple of months, and she wondered if he actually forgot about her for a while. A small smile formed on her lips when she started watching Smokescreen texting Bumblebee. Those two had to be the best of friends…she was actually envious, even though she and the redhead were friends. At least her dad would be happy to know she had a friend…but would probably tease her by the fact that said-friend was a guy.

"I think that's his bus." Smokescreen stated when a bus pulled up.

The blonde stood up from the bench she was seated on and watched as the vehicle pulled up in front of the station and people started getting off. Knowing her dad, he would probably be one of the last to get off. As the people piled out and her patience starting to wear thin, she finally found him: a meek red-haired man with glasses holding a suitcase. She ran forward, a grin plastered on her face.

"Dad, you made it!"

Rung laughed and felt the wind knocked out of him when his daughter lunged forward and hugged him. Nevertheless, he regained his stance and greeted, "Quickslinger! I've missed you so much! How are you enjoying Jasper; it's not too quiet for your taste, is it?"

The blonde laughed. "Believe it or not, Jasper's great! In fact, I don't miss the city at all!" Her smile faded when her father looked away for a moment. "…But that doesn't mean I don't miss you."

Rung's own smile reappeared before he noticed the young man standing next to his daughter. "And this must be Smokescreen!" He proceeded to shake hands with him. "Quickslinger's told me so much about you; I'm glad you're looking out for her."

Smokescreen blushed and sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Aw…it was no problem. Friends are always there for each other…"

Quickslinger inwardly smiled at the younger redhead's remark. He was right…friends ARE always there for each other…and Smokescreen was the one who proved that to her. Her thoughts stopped when she helped her dad with his suitcase.

"Dad, you need to start lifting weights! You just have one suitcase and you have trouble lifting it!"

Rung laughed nervously. "Yes, maybe I should take your advice… It'll be nice to see my old friend Ratchet; how is he doing, by the way?"

The blonde blew out a sigh. "If you want to know the truth Dad, he acts like a typical old fart. No offense to Ratchet, mind you."

* * *

"Quick's lookin' good out there." Bulkhead examined as he took a seat on the bleachers. "Still, she can't hold back against the Sparks Jaguars."

Arcee leaned back on her seat and crossed her arms. "All I have to say is she'd better not get cocky."

Bumblebee leaned forward and used his phone to take pictures of the Jasper Panther players, Quickslinger being in a majority of the shots. Optimus was sitting on the bottom row, Shane Jetlagg and Ratchet sitting on both sides, with Rung sitting next to Ratchet. Smokescreen was sitting next to Bumblebee shouting out cheers to their friend with Jack, Miko, and Rafael joining in. As for Quickslinger, she was next to go up to the plate to bat, and that would be quickly, seeing as the player before her couldn't even hit the ball. Needless to say, the Sparks Jaguars were good…but not for long.

"I'm glad I'm finally able to see Quickslinger play after she's been away from home." Rung stated. "It makes me wonder if she wants to stay in Jasper forever…"

Ratchet chuckled. "Rung, no matter what, Quickslinger will always love you…and I'm sure she'll want to come back to the city."

Rung's smile suddenly faded and his eyes grew serious behind his spectacles. "Ratchet…can I let you in on something?"

"Yes, what is it?"

"Well…I didn't mention this earlier because I didn't want Quickslinger to be embarrassed…but there were some miscreants giving her a hard time back home…and it was all over her appearance and her personality. It was around that time that I brought up Jasper, and she immediately wanted to move here."

The elder man's eyes widened and he glanced over at the blonde. "So…she wanted to come here because she was being bullied and wanted to get away from it."

Rung nodded. "Truth be told, kids have always given her a hard time…for the same reasons. That's why she's always had trouble making friends…until she met Smokescreen."

What the two didn't realize was that Smokescreen overheard their conversation, causing him to slump in his seat and let out a sad sigh. He didn't even realize she had been bullied so severely…and that's why she reacted so strongly to Jack and Raf being bullied by Vince. Why would anyone want to pick on Quickslinger? Was it because of how messy her hair was? Was it because of the freckles on her cheeks? Was it because of her confident and go-getter attitude? Those things…those little things…were just a part of what he liked about her, and anyone who picked on her obviously didn't want a true friend. Why did kids have to be so cruel to one another?

"Quick's getting ready to bat!" Miko cried out. "Everybody get their cameras ready!"

Quickslinger stood at the plate and tapped the tip of her bat on the dirt, causing a small cloud to stir up. The pitcher for the Jaguars locked eyes with her, probably hoping to intimidate her…but when it came to baseball, she was tough as nails. Judging from the look in his eyes…he was about to make a shot that would make rookie players instantly strike out. Well…she watched enough games to know how to counter each throw.

"And up next to bat, number 8 of the Jasper Panthers, Quickslinger!" The announcer next to the scoreboard shouted into his megaphone.

"Go Quickslinger, you can do it!" Smokescreen shouted from the bleachers.

Quickslinger kept her eyes on the pitcher and watched as he leaned his arm back before slinging it forward, the ball leaving his hand and coming at her like a speeding bullet. Wait for it… Wait for it… And just as it was about to come at her face, particularly at her nose…

WHACK!

The bat slammed against the ball and sent it flying, the Jaguars in the outfield scrambling to try and catch it. They didn't even pay attention to the blonde making a mad-dash for the bases. The spectators knew this as the first time the Jaguars scrambled to get a shot from the Panthers. Then, to everyone's amazement, Quickslinger managed to get a home run before the outfielders caught the ball…and since another player was ahead of her, the Panthers managed to score two points…two points needed to stay ahead of the opponent team.

"Whoo! All right, Quickslinger!" Smokescreen cheered, almost wearing his voice out. "If they keep this pace up, the game's theirs!"

Bulkhead chuckled. "Looks like Quick and some of the younger players are at the top of their game, but the senior players have cold feet."

Arcee stared at some of the other Panther players and noticed said-senior players looking at the blonde with a hint of jealousy. "Let's just hope those senior players keep civil…"

* * *

"This is it guys…if the Panthers score another point, then they win." Smokescreen examined as the game finally got to its climax. "And Quickslinger's up to bat!"

Arcee nodded in agreement, surprised by how engrossed by the game she had become. "All she has to do is make a home run…"

Quickslinger stepped back up to the plate and held onto her bat, ready and waiting. She knew the Jaguars wouldn't be holding back anymore; she could tell they were taking it easy because of pure cockiness, but not anymore. The pitcher wanted to make sure the ball actually hit the blonde in the nose…but she wouldn't let that happen, not with all the blood, sweat, and tears she shed for this sport for most of her life.

"Get ready to go home with your tails between your legs…" She muttered under her breath as her eyes once again met the pitcher's.

The pitcher rolled the ball a few times in his hand behind his back before finally throwing it. Quickslinger only had a few seconds to analyze the trajectory. Ugh…this was a sidewinder…but she knew what to do to hit it and hit it hard. All she had to do was wait…wait for the right moment…and…NOW.

WHACK!

The ball once again flew…but it was flying faster than before. The Jaguars were too busy gawking at the ball before it dawned on them that they had to go catch the thing…but they were too slow, as the ball went over the fence and out of their reach. As for Quickslinger, she dashed past the players and the bases, offering a few flippant waves to them as she passed them. Her teammates stared in awe before cheering for her and ushering her to home base. To add some dramatic flair, the blonde slid to home base, her bottom hitting the dirt and her foot skidding to the plate.

And that was the night the Jasper Panthers beat the Sparks Jaguars.

All of the spectators for the Jasper team stood up in the bleachers and cheered madly. Quickslinger wiped the dirt off her butt and looked up to hear the denizens of Jasper as well as her own teams sending cheers in her direction. Without warning, her teammates picked her up, causing her to yelp; she never had such a good feeling before. The blonde glanced over at the bleachers and saw her friends…yes, her friends, cheering for her, and her father looked so proud.

"Quickslinger!" She heard a voice call out.

When she was put down, Quickslinger looked around to find the source of the voice…but figured out who it was when Smokescreen ran over and picked her up, tightly hugging her in the process. The action startled her at first, but she found herself pressing her cheek to his…and then it happened.

She pressed her lips to his cheek and kissed it.

"Quick…did you just kiss me?" The redhead asked in surprise.

The blonde blinked her eyes and turned away to hide her beet-red cheeks. "…I don't know what came over me…"

"I guess…we both got a little too excited…" He laughed nervously.

Quickslinger suddenly smirked. "Sounds like you're glad it happened."

"Well…that's my little secret."


	9. Pain in the Gut

Author's Note: While Smokescreen deals with the aftermath of the now-famous 'victory kiss', Quickslinger wakes up one night with severe stomach pains and bleeding. When it's revealed what's causing the symptoms, Smokescreen goes and talks to her about it.

* * *

Chapter 9: Pain in the Gut

Quickslinger stared at the screen on her phone, which displayed a picture of a baseball trophy in the school's trophy case. Yeah, it was the trophy from beating the Sparks Jaguars…and because of that victory, she gained a bit of popularity amongst her peers. However, she preferred to hang around her current friends: Jack, Miko, and Rafael. But she was a bit flustered that a new photo made its way on Bumblebee's phone: the one of her kissing Smokescreen on the cheek.

Honestly, couldn't he just delete that picture already?

As she sat on her bed, she grunted when she felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen. Crap…why did it have to flare up now? With a sigh, she opened her nightstand and pulled out what looked like a bottle of medication. She grabbed one of the pills and begrudgingly swallowed it. She would feel better in a short while…but it was still best in her opinion that the others didn't know about it. Ratchet probably knew from her dad…but no one else had to know.

She didn't want Smokescreen to worry himself sick about her.

* * *

Speaking of Smokescreen, he was busy picking up overtime at the sporting goods store, earning a few extra bucks to pay on his cell phone and car; Ratchet made everyone pay their own things even though they shared a residence. Still, it was better working here than the KO Burger…no offense to Jack.

But things had been a little awkward at work. Apparently, everyone in town got wind of what came to be dubbed the "victory kiss". He wasn't really embarrassed…but it was still weird concerning how much attention he was getting over it. Some of the girls that came into the store chatted about how cute it was and then guys came in and teased him about it…and that included one of his fellow employees.

"Have you decided not to wash your cheek ever again, Smokey?" A strawberry-blonde man asked the redhead.

Smokescreen could only blush and turn his face away, a frown forming on his lips. "It was just the heat of the moment getting to Quickslinger; quit picking on me about it."

"I'm just playin' around; don't get so uptight!"

"Whatever." The redhead huffed. "And I'm not uptight!"

Smokescreen's coworker just chuckled. "You're just a grouch because you still haven't heard from the military school! If you don't get in, it's not the end of the world!"

"…I have to get into that school." Smokescreen suddenly lamented. "It's…it's always been my dream to serve my country…to be…SOMEONE worth being recognized. I mean…I feel like it's my…well, destiny to go!"

His coworker's face dropped. "Wow…didn't realize it meant so much to you. Speaking of dreams, what else is that Quickslinger good at besides baseball? I mean…she might need a backup just in case her dreams of a baseball career fall through."

A smirk suddenly appeared on the redhead's face. "With her skill? There's no way they'll fall through! She'll be the reason they make an official women's team for the Major Leagues!"

"How's she gettin' along with everyone else?"

Smokescreen sighed and checked over the contents of the cash register. "As you know, she gets along great with me. She gets along great with 'Bee, Bulk, and the kids; I think Optimus and Hawkeye like her too. Ratchet…I heard him say she was 'tolerable'. But…Arcee gets on her case a lot, and most of the time it's over the littlest things. I heard she tried to accuse Quick of starting a fight with that bully Vince, but she was just protecting Rafael."

"That Arcee…she gets on everyone's case." The other man agreed. "I guess that's the only way she can deal with her partner on the force dying…what was his name? I think it was Cliffjumper…"

"Yeah…and I heard she lost another partner before him. I know she's had it tough, but she needs to stop treating Quickslinger like we brought her in to replace Cliffjumper." He paused and found himself staring at the wall. "Now that I think about it…when I first came, she treated me the same way…"

The strawberry-blonde put away some pairs of jogging pants before remembering something and turning back to his fellow employee. "Ya know Smokey, I was just thinking…I was there at the big game on the back bleachers…and while Quick was waiting to bat…did you notice that she was clutching her stomach a little?"

"Clutching her stomach? What do you mean?"

"Well, as she was sitting down, she had her hand over the lower part of her stomach and was wincing. But if she was still hurting, she was hiding it well when it was her turn to bat."

The redhead thought about it…and he did notice that she was holding her stomach in the dugout. Of course, he attributed it to menstrual cramps or something like that…but could there be something else wrong?

* * *

"About time you got back from work!" Quickslinger groaned. "You don't know how boring it is without you guys here!"

"And hello to you too." Smokescreen laughed. "If you miss me so much, why not get a job down at the sporting goods store?"

"Can't. You never know when we have to play on weekends!"

"That's a shame; if you got an income that would help out even more."

"Where the heck does everyone else work? I know Arcee's a police officer and Ratchet's a doctor…"

The redhead scratched the back of his head before he decided to explain. "Well…Optimus works at the library, Bulkhead works with the nearby construction company, and 'Bee works at the auto supply store."

"What about Hawkeye?"

"Well…don't tell her I said this, but she used to be an assassin. Now…she considers herself retired."

The blonde's eyes widened. "Wow, she used to kill people for a living?"

"Yeah…and don't think for a minute that it's cool, 'cause it's not! Even Hawkeye said that she hated what she used to do."

"Sheesh, I won't. Well, I already know I'm going to be a professional baseball player, and nothing's gonna stop me from achieving my dream!"

* * *

Smokescreen stirred from his slumber when he heard footsteps going from one the bedrooms to the bathroom. Normally, this wouldn't wake him up…but this was about the third or fourth time the toilet was flushed. Whoever was going to and from the bathroom either caught some form of stomach virus or had trouble digesting Ratchet's cooking. Either way, the redhead rolled over in bed and buried his face into the pillow and attempted to drown out the noise.

And then came the scream and the moaning.

"R-Ratchet…Ratchet, please wake up…!"

Smokescreen immediately recognized who the voice belonged to: Quickslinger. What was she doing up in the middle of the night, and why was she calling for Ratchet? He got up out of bed and went out into the hallway…where he found Quickslinger standing outside Ratchet's door clutching her lower abdomen.

"Quickslinger, what's going on?" Smokescreen asked, fully awake now. "Are you okay?"

The blonde groaned and hugged her body tighter. "…M-My stomach…I crapped out a lot of blood…and I can't get Ratchet up…"

At the mention of blood, the redhead started to frantically pound on the elder man's door. "Ratchet! Ratchet, wake up! We have an emergency!"

The two could hear suppressed cursing coming from the other side of the door before it swung upon, revealing Ratchet in his pajamas and an angry expression on his face. "It's one in the morning; this had better be important!"

"Ratchet…Quickslinger's stomach is hurting her…and she said when she went to the bathroom, blood came out…"

The elder man's eyes widened before he grabbed hold of the blonde's shoulders. "Wake the others up; I'm going to help her get dressed!"

Smokescreen nodded and began pounding on the other bedroom doors, ignoring the groans and complaints of the others. Ratchet meanwhile helped Quickslinger dress into some loose clothes, as it was apparent she was too weak to try and do it herself. Everyone else was coming to see what was wrong with the blonde once Smokescreen got to the attic to wake Hawkeye.

"Smokescreen, get dressed!" Ratchet called out. "We need to get her to the hospital now!"

"Ratchet, what's going on?" Arcee asked.

The elder man sighed and helped Quickslinger up, who let out a yelp of pain. "I believe she has an intestinal ulcer…but hopefully she does not have severe internal bleeding…"

* * *

Smokescreen now found himself pacing back and forth along the ER wing. Everyone else was seated, but eager to know what was wrong with Quickslinger. The redhead finally sighed and decided to take a seat next to Ratchet.

"Ratchet…you acted like you knew what was wrong with her." Smokescreen muttered. "I'd really like to know what's wrong with my friend."

Ratchet sighed, deciding that now was the time to share with everyone what Rung shared with him over the past few years. Everyone, even Hawkeye, leaned in closer in preparation for what he was about to say.

"Quickslinger…suffers from a condition called Crohn's Disease. It causes abdominal pain…and even bleeding and scarring…because her own immune system attacks her gastrointestinal tissue. She's on medication…but it looks like she's been skipping on her dosages." He paused and snorted. "If it weren't for that medicine, she wouldn't even be able to play baseball; she needs to take better care of herself…"

"If she doesn't like medicine…is there anything else she can do?" The redhead asked worriedly.

The elder man sighed again. "Well…it's possible to correct most of it with surgery…but for some reason, she doesn't want to go through with it."

It was June Darby who stepped out of the room with the doctor after a lengthy examination over Quickslinger. June went over to Smokescreen and placed her hand on his shoulder. "You can go see her…she really wants to see you."

The redhead nodded and got up to go to the blonde's hospital room. When he stepped inside, he found her lying in bed staring up at the ceiling, a tired look on her face. He walked up and took a seat next to the bed, a smile plastered on his lips to hopefully make her feel better.

"You look like you've seen better days."

Quickslinger snorted. "I could really use the extra sleep." She turned her head to him and noticed he was tired as well. "Sorry for waking you guys up."

"Don't apologize." His smile disappeared and he cleared his throat, obviously getting ready for a long talk. "Why didn't you tell me you had Crohn's Disease?"

The blonde's eyes widened before she sighed and stared back at the ceiling. "Ratchet told you didn't he? Well…I didn't want to have special treatment…which would mean putting dos and don'ts on everything I ate and did. I wanted you guys to think I was normal…"

"That doesn't matter if your health's at risk… Ratchet said surgery could fix it, at least by a little…so why won't you have it?"

"I don't want to talk about it, Smokescreen." Quickslinger answered in an all-too-serious tone.

"Quickslinger…"

The blonde stared back at him…and she could see that he was extremely worried about her. This is what she wanted to avoid: having someone worried sick about her. That's why she kept her disease a secret. But…if she didn't elaborate on her feelings…that would make things worse…and she felt like it was a bad thing to keep secrets from her best friend. With a sigh and fighting back tears, she decided to reveal her reason.

"…Because I'm scared of surgery…I'm scared of hospitals period…"

"Quickslinger…everybody's afraid of something…and it's okay to be afraid. If you act like you're not, it'll eat away at you." He pause and surprised her when he lifted up her hand and kissed the back of it, showing that he truly cared for her, probably as much as her dad did. "You can talk to me about anything…and I'll always listen."

"…Do you promise? If you don't…I'll take some of your guts and put them in me." She joked.

"Yeah…it's a promise I'll keep forever."


	10. Have a Good Time

Author's Note: Quickslinger refuses to go to the school dance, and instead spends the night out with Smokescreen. How does she feel being alone with him for more than just a school ride? And why is Optimus suddenly questioning her family ties?

* * *

Chapter 10: Have a Good Time

"No. I'm not doing it."

"Come on, Quick! You don't have to bring anybody if you don't want to!"

"Do I need to repeat myself? I'm not going to some frickin' dance." She paused and placed her hands on her hips. "Besides, you're one to talk, Miko! You don't want to go to the dance either!"

Miko rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. "Well, Jack's making me go, but he's going to ask Sierra for a dance. I'm just there for backup."

The blonde laughed and crossed her arms as she and the Japanese girl sat on the front steps of the school. "Jack doesn't have a chance with her! I already know she's gonna dance with Vince! Still…you and Jack seem to get along pretty well." She paused and stood up to stretch out her arms. "But I don't bother with the dances; never have, never will."

Miko suddenly smirked. "Oh, I see… You're just skipping out on the dance because you want to spend the night with Smokey!"

Quickslinger blushed and her smirked melted away. "S-Shut up! I just hate dances!"

"Sure…"

* * *

"So, you hate dances huh?" Bulkhead asked, trying and failing to hide the grin on his face. "I figured you would go if Jack and Miko were going."

Quickslinger rolled her violet eyes and played with her can of Sprite. "Jack's only using Miko as backup; he's really hoping to bang Sierra tonight."

Arcee frowned. "Are you suggesting Jack wants to have sex with her?"

"You never know; a bunch of the guys in the city did it. That's why there were a bunch of pregnant sophomores when I was down there." She paused and leaned her head on the counter. "Besides…even when I was interested, no one ever wanted to go out with me…"

"Why not take Raf?" The brunette suggested.

The blonde frowned. "Raf's too young! Besides, it's high-schoolers only!"

Before anyone else could make possible suggestions, Smokescreen came downstairs, fresh out of the shower and in fresh clothes, catching Quickslinger's attention. Wait…if she asked him to go with her… No…he was an adult…others would think it was too weird. However…that didn't mean she wouldn't spend time with him. She took a sip from her soda before asking, "Hey Smokescreen…do you have any plans tonight?"

The redhead perked up at the sound of her voice and responded, "Well, no, I don't have anything in particular planned. Why?"

"…Um…you wanna go out tonight? You know…just cruise around or go out to eat?"

Ratchet put down his paper. "Are you sure that's really a good idea, Quickslinger? You need to watch what you eat and you shouldn't be doing activities late at night."

Quickslinger frowned. "Ratchet, I thought I told you that I don't want any special treatment! I'm sticking to my recommended dosage from now on; I'm going to be FINE."

It was apparent that she had been treated different lately ever since the others found out she had Crohn's Disease. Everyone kept asking her if she was okay or if her stomach was hurting, they made her stop drinking milk and eating strong foods, and they even had the gall to suggest to her to quit baseball. What were they thinking, asking her that? Even if she was puking up her internal organs, she was going to keep playing baseball. So far the only one not giving her special treatment was Smokescreen…and she liked that because he knew better. But everyone else…they were getting to be a total pain in the butt.

"Ratchet, lay off of her." Smokescreen interjected. "Quickslinger's tough; she'll be perfectly fine."

The blonde perked up as she realized what he was saying. "Wait…is that a yes?"

The redhead smiled. "Of course it's a yes! Why would I say no?" He paused and realized something. "Wait, I thought you would be going to the dance tonight. Don't have a date?"

"…I hate dances; all it's for is for the snobs to go and talk about people behind their backs or lure someone into screwing them. Not my type of deal; I just feel sorry for Jack and Miko."

* * *

It was surprisingly cold that night, colder than usual for autumn. It was a good thing that Smokescreen's car had a working heater. Quickslinger buried her chin into the hood of her jacket before the interior was warm enough for her skin. At the same time, a small smile spread across her lips at the thought of the popular girls at the dance freezing in their paper-thin and low-cut dresses.

"Looks like you had a good idea to not go to the dance." Smokescreen commented. "You'd be freezing right now in a dress; autumn's not supposed to be this cold."

"Yeah…I don't wear dresses anyway." Quickslinger quietly agreed.

"Is something the matter? You've been awful quiet."

"Oh, nothing's the matter…" The blonde lied.

Something was the matter. She was used to riding with Smokescreen alone…but that was during the daytime, when he was taking her to school. This was at night, and while the redhead thought of it as an innocent night of friends hanging out, she actually believed it to border on a date. That didn't really worry her…what did was what other people would think if they saw them together. After all…she was still a minor, and Smokescreen was almost twenty. In the city, that was normal…but the one thing she hated about small towns was that people tended to start gossip just to liven it up.

They would possibly gossip that Smokescreen was dating a child…and he could go to jail for it.

No…she wouldn't let that happen. He was too precious to her, and she wouldn't put up with pathetic small-town gossip.

"So, where are we gonna eat? Is there any place besides the KO Burger?"

To her surprise, Smokescreen laughed. "Well, they just put a coffee shop in town…so why don't we go check it out? I heard the manager actually used to work for a big coffee chain back in Las Vegas."

Quickslinger shrugged. "Okay, that sounds good."

* * *

Optimus sat down on the sofa and decided to catch up on one of his favorite books before heading to bed. As he was about to turn the page in the John Grisham novel, he felt a pair of arms wrap around his shoulders. He sharply turned his head and saw Shane Jetlagg herself snuggling close to him. A smile slowly formed on his lips as the young woman brought her lips to his cheek.

"I take it Ratchet's already in bed?"

"Yes…he has to be at the clinic early tomorrow." He paused and placed a bookmark in the book before closing it. "Arcee is working overtime at the station, but everyone else is here…except Smokescreen and Quickslinger."

Shane smirked. "I heard she decided not to go to the dance. You have to admit…those two have become close."

Optimus nodded. "That they have. After what Ratchet informed me…that is very good, considering Quickslinger has had great difficulty making friends."

The young woman noticed a picture of Quickslinger with her father that was recently added to the wall in the living room. She studied it for a second before turning back to her lover and stating, "Are you sure she's Rung's kid? She looks nothing like him…"

The older man paused. Now that he thought about it…he never heard any details about Quickslinger's mother, and there was no physical resemblance to Rung in any way. Either she looked more like a distant relative, perhaps a grandparent…or…

* * *

"Here's our food! Careful, it's hot!"

Quickslinger stared for a second at the chicken Panini she ordered before picking it up and lightly blowing on it. She notices Smokescreen heavily blowing on the toasted turkey bun he ordered before taking a bite out of it. A smile appeared on her face; that was so like him. To top it all off, he bought a hot chocolate for each of them to fight the cold of the night. She finally took a bite out of her sandwich and swallowed it with help from the hot chocolate, even when it scalded her mouth a little.

"How is it?" The redhead asked with a full mouth.

The blonde smiled and nodded, her mouth full as well. "It's really good; you picked the right place!"

"Everyone at the gym was talking about it, and I figured it would be a place teenagers would want to hang out. I mean, I know you can't be at the baseball field all the time, and this place doesn't smell like day-old hamburger."

"I'm surprised the grease smell hasn't permanently been soaked into Jack's skin and clothes." Quickslinger added. "I still feel sorry for him and Miko being stuck at the stupid dance; me and Raf are lucky."

Smokescreen cocked his head to the side. "Huh? I figured you wanted to go…"

The blonde's smile suddenly disappeared. "…Tch. Dances only exist for the popular snobs to start gossip about the regular kids…and for them to take someone home to bang…that or some boys start to lure girls into their cars just to rape them. The times I wanted to go…back in grade school…boys would tell me they would take me, then when I show up, they brought someone else, and then tell me they couldn't believe I fell for it. So…no thanks…"

The redhead's smile dropped as well. "…I-I'm sorry."

"…It's not your fault. The kids I went to school with…they were nothing but jerks." A smirk suddenly appeared on her face. "In fact, most of them are now dropped out of school because they had a baby or got into drugs and alcohol. So it serves them right…"

* * *

"So I take it the dance didn't go over so well?" Arcee asked a frowning Jack.

Jack just growled and slumped further in his seat in the back of Bulkhead's truck, Miko also wearing a displeased look. "I got to dance with Sierra for a minute, but then Vince cut in and started hitting on her. I told him to stop, and he shoved me into the table…and that's when Miko kicked him in the groin. So yeah…it went horrible."

"I told you we should've stayed home like Quick…" Miko grumbled. "Say…did she happen to go out with Smokey?"

Bulkhead chuckled. "How did you know? Yeah, he took her out to eat."

The Japanese girl pumped her fist up in the air, much to the boy's chagrin. "Ha, I knew it! She likes him!"

"You know…you guys have been acting different around her lately. Is it because of that disease she has?" Jack questioned.

The woman sighed. "You could say that…although she hates it."

"Why?"

"She says she doesn't want special treatment…and that's why she's stuck closer to Smokescreen than ever. He's the only one who doesn't treat her any different. Well…'Bee's the same to an extent…"

* * *

Smokescreen found Quickslinger surprisingly quiet on the drive back home. Did he say something to upset her? He didn't remember saying anything in particular that made her seem offended; they were just having an everyday conversation. So…why was she so sullen?

"Quickslinger…are you okay? I didn't say anything to make you mad, did I?"

The blonde looked up at him for a second before shaking her head. "No…you didn't. It's just…" She breathed out a sigh before her face tensed up and she belted out, "Everyone else has been treating me differently and they're starting to become a major pain in the ass!"

"What do you mean? You mean after we found out you have Crohn's Disease?"

"Yeah, exactly after that! Ratchet's always on my case about what I eat, what I do, and when I take my medicine! I can't believe the old fart told me to quit baseball; who the hell does he think he is!? And everyone else is always asking me if I'm okay, and I mean ALWAYS! I just have a few stomach problems; I'm not majorly sick and I'm NOT dying!"

"Quickslinger…"

"Why are they giving me such bull!? No one in the city ever bothered me about it, and my dad wasn't on my case about it! So…why…"

The redhead decided he would answer that. "…It's because we care about you."

Quickslinger's eyes widened and she stared at Smokescreen. "…They do? I thought some of them, mostly Ratchet and Arcee, hated me…"

"What would give you that idea? We don't hate you at all… You just…" He paused and breathed out a sigh as well. "You really gave us a scare…because we thought you would be in the hospital for a long time… But…the others don't understand how tough you are like I do…so just give them another chance, okay?"

The blonde pouted for a good few minutes before she solemnly nodded and answered, "…Okay." She turned her head towards him again. "Hey…thanks for taking me out tonight."

"Hey…what are friends for?"


	11. Beautiful Dreamer

Author's Note: After a long wait, the chapter's finally here. Quickslinger has a sleepover with Jack and the other kids, but what happens when Smokescreen and Bumblebee join in? Let's just say Ratchet grumbles about it later, for more than one reason.

* * *

Chapter 11: Beautiful Dreamer

"Why don't you ever come down and hang with everybody else? Are you antisocial?"

Hawkeye glanced over the book she was reading to see Quickslinger staring at her. She would figure out how she got into her room in the attic later; why was she even asking her about her personal business? None of the others dared bother the former assassin while she hid away in the attic, staring down at the town…but this one apparently had a growing death wish. No…she wasn't like that anymore; killing was now the one thing she hated most in the world.

"…Can I help you?" Hawkeye asked in a low voice.

"Uh, yeah." The blonde answered. "Ratchet says to get your butt down to dinner or he'll have Bulkhead sit on you."

To her surprise, the raven-haired woman only laughed darkly as she closed her book and sat it on her bed.

"Ratchet…he can do his worst." She paused and stared at Quickslinger. "I certainly hope you've been sticking to your medication."

Quickslinger frowned. "You're starting to sound like everyone else. I'm sticking to my regular dosage from now on, so stop worrying."

"Oh, I wasn't worried at all about you…just surprised at how careless you were. If you really take your baseball passion seriously…then you'll take better care of yourself."

"Why are you suddenly so concerned about my well-being?"

Hawkeye paused and stared out the window at the setting sun. "…I don't want you to end up like me."

"…Huh?"

To her surprise once again, the raven-haired woman this time let out a somewhat-warm chuckle as she cast her eyes on the teen. "…I'll tell you what I mean later on. Don't you have a sleepover to prepare for?"

"Oh yeah…Jack and the others are coming over to spend the night. I know Bumblebee and Smokescreen are gonna hound in on the fun." The blonde paused and smiled a little. "…Not that I mind, though."

* * *

"About time you guys got here!" Quickslinger griped. "Is suburban traffic that bad?"

"Very funny, Quickslinger." Jack grumbled. "The important thing is we made it, right?"

The blonde just pouted and crossed her arms before whipping her head to the side, her ponytail almost smacking Miko in the face. "Yeah, yeah, yeah… Just get your sorry butts in here; Smokescreen's ordering us a pizza and 'Bee rented some horror movies!"

"Are you sure you're allowed to have pizza anymore, with your stomach and all?" Rafael asked with a hint of concern. "And the scary movies aren't rated R, are they?"

"Tch. Raf, you worry too much." Quickslinger retorted. "First off, I told you guys I'm back on regular dosage, so a couple of slices aren't gonna hurt. Second off, one R-rated horror film isn't gonna scar you for life."

"How can you be so sure on that?"

"Smokescreen and Bumblebee told me they watched those kinds of movies when they were kids, and they've turned out just fine!"

Jack's eye widened and he let out a nervous laugh. "Uh…right…"

* * *

"I got dibs on sausage." Jack declared

"Uh, save me a slice of cheese." Raf suggested

"Pepperoni's mine!" Miko announced.

"Make way for the carnivore, dorks! Meat lover's is mine!" Quickslinger boldly stated.

The four friends laughed as they each fetched a slice of pizza just delivered to the door. Of course, they had to expect Bumblebee or Smokescreen swooping in at any moment to nab a slice, so they decided to devour the slices as quickly as possible. But that would all be in vain…

"Cool, you saved us some!" Smokescreen laughed as he and Bumblebee grabbed the remaining slices.

Quickslinger snorted and tried and failed to snatch the slice from the redhead's hand. "As if! Aren't you guys too old to participate in a sleepover? Or are you just big kids in adult bodies?"

Smokescreen couldn't help but smile. "I guess you could say we're just kids at heart."

"That's obvious; I saw you guys up late last night playing Call of Duty! And Bumblebee always plays racing games with Raf!" The blonde just sighed and threw herself onto the sofa. "Oh well, boyish men are more fun than boring old fogies like Ratchet."

Jack laughed nervously. "Better not let Ratchet hear that, or he'll tell the coach to drop you off the team for 'medical reasons'."

Quickslinger jumped up from the sofa. "He wouldn't!"

The boy continued to play on this. "Oh, old Ratchet's unpredictable sometimes. Just about anything can set him off."

"Come on Jack, you're scaring her." The redhead joked. "Well, me and 'Bee are gonna do another round on the Xbox. Yell if you need these boyish men to entertain you."

The blonde snorted and wrapped her arms around Jack and Raf's shoulders. "Please…the only yelling you'll be hearing is from these two crying out for mercy when me and Miko pummel them with cotton and feathers!"

Rafael gulped. "Y-You don't mean…"

Miko cheered and grabbed a cushion off the sofa. "Extreme pillow fight! Girls vs. boys no-holds free-for-all!"

A smirk suddenly appeared on Jack's face. "All right…and whoever wins gets to take on Bumblebee and Smokescreen!"

The two young men glanced nervously at each other before smirks appeared on their faces and they ran up to their rooms. The teens wondered just what those two were planning…and they got their answer when the two came back down with pillows from their beds. Quickslinger immediately knew that they immediately wanted to join in, not wait around for the boys or girls to win; Bumblebee was always so protective of Raf, anyway.

"You'd better be ready for us!" The redhead cried out.

"I'm ready for you to eat feathers!" The blonde countered.

Smokescreen was the first to be smacked with cotton. Jack managed to duck Miko's attack and hit her on the shoulder. The Japanese girl retaliated with a blow to the upper back. Bumblebee of course shielded Rafael as the blonde came at him while evading the redhead. As they chased each other around, they weren't looking and suddenly collided into each other, forming a makeshift dog pile. On top of said dog pile were Smokescreen and Quickslinger…chest-to-chest, their noses touching each other at the tip, and beet-red blushes forming on their cheeks. They were so wrapped up in figuring out exactly how they managed to wind up in this position that they ignored an angry Ratchet coming into the room and shouting, "Would it hurt any of you to keep it down!? I'm trying to work!"

When Ratchet stepped in, he immediately froze when he saw the position everyone was in, particularly Smokescreen and Quickslinger. Suddenly flustered, the elder man quickly leaned over, not caring if his back was bad or not, and forcefully got the blonde off of the redhead. The medic suddenly glared daggers at the young man as he muttered darkly, "…Never again…"

Once Ratchet left, grumbling and muttering curses as he did, everyone else awkwardly got up and stood quietly, trying to understand the motivation for the medic's behavior. And then it hit them…he thought Smokescreen and Quickslinger were about to…

"Talk about total intrusion…" The blonde muttered. "Me and Smokescreen were NOT about to…"

"So, uh, how about that movie?" The redhead quickly interrupted. "'Bee, could you get it started?"

Bumblebee quickly nodded and grabbed the DVD before turning on the DVD player and sticking it in. As for Smokescreen, he swiftly dashed into the kitchen while muttering, "I-I'll make some popcorn…"

The teens started glancing nervously at each other; Ratchet's reaction was really unexpected, and it made everyone start to speculate about the dog pile positions. Jack decided to be the first one to speak about it.

"Did…Ratchet seriously think Smokescreen and Quickslinger were going to…"

"Do it?" Miko filled in, forgetting that the blonde was in earshot.

"No…I mean kiss…" Jack muttered in an annoyed tone. "Uh…sorry Quick…"

Quickslinger rolled her eyes and pouted. "I'm gonna get that old fart back…just you wait…"

* * *

Smokescreen groaned as the sunlight hit him right in the eyes, waving a tired hand over his face to shield it. He felt like he didn't get much sleep that night; that movie scared even him. Raf was hiding behind Bumblebee the entire time, and Jack was actually clinging to Miko. Quickslinger…she actually slipped up and buried her face in his shoulder, quickly drawing back when she realized what she was doing. He didn't mind it…but maybe she was afraid of what Ratchet might do to him.

Stretching out, he glanced over to his dresser…and noticed immediately that something was missing. There were some of his clothes that desperately needed to be put in the washer, his 3DS, his controller for the Xbox…but something wasn't right.

Wait…where was Lieutenant Bear!?

The redhead shot up out of bed and darted around the room, throwing a few objects around to find his stuffed animal. It would've sounded silly to some, but that was a gift from his mother, who raised him all on her own, before he decided to go out on his own and find Optimus and the others. He couldn't bear to lose it; it was too precious! He ran out of his room and glanced into Bumblebee's room; maybe it got in there by mistake.

Bumblebee was sprawled out on his bed, but there was no Lieutenant Bear. He certainly hoped Ratchet or Arcee didn't throw it away because it was 'too childish for him'. Figuring it might have got mixed up with his dirty clothes, he ran down the stairs to head for the laundry room. Going there meant going through the living room, where the kids were sleeping; he would have to be quiet. With a shallow sigh, Smokescreen tip-toed down the steps, but once he got down, something caught his eye.

There was Lieutenant Bear…hugged tightly to Quickslinger's chest.

The blonde had her hair out of its usual ponytail, and her face was buried into the fuzz of the stuffed animal's head. The redhead couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief…but how did she get it? A thought came to him: still scared of that movie, Quickslinger must've crept into his room after he went to bed and got it as a security tool.

Well…he knew Lieutenant Bear was in good hands…he would go get it later…


End file.
